Gav Thorpe - The Crown of the Conqueror

"How far?" she asked.

Noran did not reply, but he gave a grunt, presumably pulling back hard on the reins. The wagon creaked to a halt.

"Quarter of a mile, no more," said Noran. "Get out here."

The cart rose a little as Noran jumped from the board. Allenya turned to see Meliu and Laasinia watching her intently.

"It will be all right," said Allenya. "We are almost out of the city."

Noran appeared at the back of the wagon to lower the tailgate. Offering up a hand, he helped Laasinia first. Meliu wrapped her arms around his neck as he lowered her to the ground.

"You are ever so brave," she said.

He gently pushed her aside and gestured for Allenya to follow. The queen did not recognise the street, but she had spent little time in the lower part of Magilnada so that was not a surprise. There were barracks here, supplied by smithies and armourers, and a great many single storey dwellings of the lower classes.

Street vendors were already hawking their wares and trades. It was a matter of moments before Allenya and her companions were amongst the swelling crowd, their clothes the surest form of disguise.

"This way," said Noran, taking the lead of the small group.

Allenya followed without argument, Meliu to her left, Laasinia a little way behind. Noran's urgency was not fuelled by the fear of discovery alone, she realised. He was weak, feet scuffing through the mud every few steps, his face soaked in sweat, eyes bloodshot as he glanced back every now and then. They reached a corner and the nobleman leant against the wall for a moment, catching his breath.

"Are you all right?" Allenya asked quietly, stopping next to Noran.

He looked as though he was about to dismiss any concerns, but sagged when he met her gaze, flickering a worried look towards Meliu.

"My recovery is temporary," he said, pitching his voice so that only Allenya could hear. "I do not know how long it will be before I succumb again. Promise me that you will get back to Ullsaard, whatever happens."

Allenya reached out to help him, but Noran pushed away, taking a deep breath.

"Enough of this," he muttered. "We should keep moving. The gate is just a couple of streets away."

Setting a steady pace, Noran headed on, head turning left and right as he worked out the best route and kept a wary eye for Anglhan's agents. Allenya felt a hand slip into hers and glanced to the side to see Meliu. Her expression was sombre.

"This is not such an adventure is it," she said. She almost bumped into Allenya as she side-stepped a puddle with a look of distaste. "If Anglhan catches us, it is going to be horrible."

"Noran will make sure we do not get caught," said Allenya, giving Meliu's hand a squeeze. "We are almost out of Magilnada."

They crossed another street and turned to the right. The tops of the gatehouses could be seen over the roofs of the buildings, less than two hundred paces away. Noran cut into a narrow alley between a bakery and a low tenement, kicking through the debris on the ground.

"Why do they have to be so filthy?" said Meliu as she picked her way amongst the garbage.

Laasinia hurried past from behind and said something to Noran, who glanced over his shoulder. Allenya looked back out of instinct and saw a handful of soldiers — Anglhan's city militia rather than legionnaires — pushing through the crowd towards the alleyway.

"That cannot be good," said Noran. "Come on, we have to just run for it!"

Breaking into a jog, the group ignored a shout from behind and stumbled out into the square behind the gate. After just a few dozen paces, Allenya was already out of breath and Meliu was panting beside her; their lives had not been a preparation for physical activity.

Ahead the gate was open and a line of abada wagons and abada carts trundled into the city. There were more guards around and about, not paying much attention. The square was busy with traffic and people and Allenya did her best to follow Noran as he wove amongst the throng, but she lost sight of him. She kept a firm grip on Meliu's hand and dragged her sister towards the gate, almost slipping over on the wet cobbles as a turning abada forced her to stop. The driver shouted down at her to be careful.

There was a growing commotion behind but Allenya did not dare look back. She realised it was stupid to focus on the gate as some kind of line to be crossed; their pursuit would not end at the wall. For a moment it seemed ridiculous. There was no chance they would get more than a hundred paces from the city before the guards caught up with them.

Emerging past a queue of customers at a costermonger's stall, Allenya saw the way was open to the gatehouse. Still there was no sign of Noran but she had no time to look for him.

"This way!" called Laasinia, appearing to the left. There was a smaller gate in the tower for foot traffic and the handmaiden veered towards it, half-running and half-walking until the two queens had caught up with her.

"Where's Noran?" Meliu said suddenly, jolting Allenya as she stopped to look around.

"He'll meet us outside," said Laasinia. "He said he'll make some kind of distraction."

"I hope he does not do anything stupidly heroic," said Allenya as she tugged at her sister to get moving again.

They walked quickly into the shadow of the secondary gateway. There were a few other people heading out of the city, though not enough to conceal the group.

"Try not to look so nervous," said Allenya, noticing Meliu's eyes darting around fearfully. "We should talk about something, make things appear normal. Tell me what you plan to do now that Noran is back with us."

"Oh, I had not thought about that," said Meliu, a hand raised to her mouth. "I am just so happy that he has recovered. It is all mixed up in my head at the moment. I know I have been acting silly, nursing him like a lover. We only had sex that one time, and he said nothing about it after. And when Ullsaard suggested we divorce, it was like a knife in my gut."

Allenya allowed Meliu to continue talking, only half-hearing what her sister said while she kept an eye on what the guards were doing. Several were sat on a bench just inside the other end of the gate-tunnel, spears and shields resting on the wall.

With every step, Allenya expected the other soldiers to come charging into the gatehouse to raise the alarm. It took every effort not to look back. As the group came level with the sentries, Allenya smiled and nodded as Meliu prattled on. She felt her sister's grip tighten for a moment and her words faltered.

"I am sure we can get everything sorted out when we are back with our husband," said Allenya. "When everybody is calmer, we shall talk it over with Ullsaard and Noran."

They came out into the daylight again and Laasinia stepped off the road.

"I'll wait for Noran," she said. "Keep going."

Allenya nodded and carried on walking, looking along the road as it stretched straight into the Magilnadan Gap, sloping gently down from the mountains. It was good to be outside the walls, and not just because of the circumstances. For more than a year, Allenya had not left the city, and for half of that she had barely set foot outside the house.

A year and more of worry, of loneliness, of ignorance had worn down her spirit and it was not until she saw the expanse of pastures and fields that Allenya recognised how insular she had become. She took a deep breath, breathing air free from the taint of the city. She realised how different it could be, not to smell smoke and people and animals, but to catch the scent of grass and flowers, feel a fresh wind on her cheek.

She realised that Meliu was still talking.

"We shall have a banquet!" Allenya declared, cutting across her sister. "When we get back to Askh, we will invite Jutaar and Ullnaar, even Luia and Noran and have the whole family together. Oh, they should bring Neerlima, and little Luissa too! I bet she has grown so much. And all of our old friends as well! The house will be full of people, and we will have songs and wine and children running around."